Finding the weakest link in a farming operation is often easier said than done. But sometimes a few energetic pigs accomplish the task quite nicely. “Today, fencing suddenly moved up the list as our weakest link,” quips Paul Freid on a brisk day in early May. He and his wife Sara, along with their 11-year-old… Read More →
Being a senior physician at Mayo Clinic in Rochester for several decades, I thought I knew quite a bit about healthcare and how it is paid for, but I’ve come to realize that my viewpoint was limited. There is always a lot new to learn. My wife and I discovered the Land Stewardship Project many… Read More →
It’s that age-old struggle: accepting a little short-term disturbance in the name of long-term stability. Dave Trauba regularly faces the challenge of explaining that tradeoff to hunters who visit the Lac Qui Parle Wildlife Refuge in western Minnesota only to find their favorite spot for shooting pheasants has recently been grazed by cattle from a… Read More →
The Minneapolis Parks and Recreation Board asked city residents a year ago for ways in which it could better support urban agriculture in the parks. From these comments, a draft of the “Urban Agriculture Activity Plan” was born. The draft has since been vetted by Parks and Recreation staff and a Community Advisory Committee, and… Read More →
Building healthy soil across Minnesota is key to creating resiliency in the face of a changing climate and is also incredibly important in supporting clean water. We all want clean drinking water for our families and communities. Right now, bills are being heard in the Minnesota Legislature that could affect drinking water throughout the state… Read More →
When I first moved to Minnesota eight years ago, my knowledge of soils and agricultural systems was purely textbook. I live and work in an amazing community that has taught me more than I ever expected to learn, and has pulled back the curtain on our current farming systems and the ways in which they… Read More →
Landon Plagge’s experience growing oats has proven that this humble grain can play a big role in revitalizing soil health on corn-soybean farms. Can the milling facility he’s proposing do the same for rural communities? (Third in a three-part series on small grains and community-based foods.) More Information • Episode 2 in Ear to the Ground Small Grains Workshop… Read More →
Minnesota’s state agencies are in the midst of gathering information and setting their priorities for the 2025 legislative session. They are deciding how they should spend their dollars, what programs to continue, what policy changes are needed, and more. What do you need? Could you take five minutes to share your ideas with the Minnesota Department… Read More →
Note: In April 2023, the Land Stewardship Project joined 10 other groups in filing a petition calling on the Environmental Protection Agency to use its emergency authority under the Safe Drinking Water Act to address the fact that nitrate contamination is causing “an imminent and substantial endangerment to public health” in the karst region of… Read More →
What with ridiculously high land prices and Washington’s inability to focus on agriculture long enough to pass a Farm Bill, it’s easy to get down about the prospects for beginning farmers these days. That’s why a national meeting held in Rochester, Minn., earlier this month was so important—not only because it proved that there are… Read More →
